Attrition-hit Cognizant adds 9,800 employees for Q1, CY22

Attrition-hit IT services firm Cognizant said that it has added 9,800 employees for Q1, 2022 ( January-March) , and is seeing the attrition rate coming down in two consecutive quarters. The New Jersey headquartered firm which has more than 2 lakh employees working out of India saw the highest attrition in 2021 at 33 per cent during September quarter 2021 (above than average industry rate) .     The company said that the attrition rate for Q1, 2022 has fallen to 29 per cent and on a year on year (yoy) basis, the company has added 43,900 employees. The total headcount of the company now stands at 3.4 lakh, as per its quarterly filings. Despite being able to bring down the employee exits, Cognizant’s attrition rate was still highest across the industry at 29 per cent followed by Infosys at 27.7 per cent.   The quarterly revenues of Cognizant grew by 9.7 per cent on a yoy basis to $4.8 billion led by a 20 per cent , yoy  growth in digital revenues . The company said that the digital revenues now account for 50 per cent of the overall revenues. In terms of 2022 outlook, the company expects revenue growth in the range of 7.2-9.2 per cent. The company said that there is a continued demand environment as digital technologies become increasingly mainstream. The company’s operating cash flow stood at $306 million.   Jan Siegmund, CFO, Cognizant said that 2022 revenue guidance includes an improved organic revenue growth outlook and lower inorganic contribution as the company remains focused on a disciplined acquisition strategy.      

    “Thanks to our talented employees, we delivered on our first quarter commitments in what is an intensely competitive global labour market.  While the economic backdrop is uncertain, we remain optimistic about the demand outlook for our solutions. Our strategic repositioning enables us to engage more deeply with clients, helping them succeed, and supports our growth trajectory,” Brian Humphries, CEO, Cognizant said in a statement.   Humphries added that as a reflection of the strong performance of Cognizant’s digital portfolio, Cognizant has increased its revenue growth outlook to $19.8 billion-$ 20.2 billion, representing 9 per cent to 11 per cent growth in constant currency, positioning us to surpass $20 billion in annual revenues for the first time.   “While we are a company in transition, our evolution has been significant across multiple dimensions. We are putting the company on a strong growth trajectory,” the Cognizant CEO added.